First look: Noro Magazine

I'm a big fan of Noro yarns. Yes, I know that they are softly spun, sometimes have knots, the colors don't always flow perfectly and if you yank too hard, they might break.  So what. I adore the colors, the natural fibers, the way that the colors sometimes ply a little bit around each other when they change from one segment to another, and I enjoy the rustic feel of the yarn.  So I was very excited to see that our friends at Vogue Knitting were producing a magazine devoted to Noro patterns. Noro Knitting Magazine arrived in stores and LYSs recently, so let's take a first look.

The magazine begins with a wonderful article by Cornelia Tuttle Hamilton, who has been a Noro fan for many years and who has written several books featuring Noro yarns.  Hamilton gives some fascinating background about the founder of Noro yarns, Eisaku Noro; how the company was founded; and how the yarn is made. One-page features highlight 2012 Noro yarns; books devoted to Noro design; and resources for Noro on the web. There's a special feature on the Lizard Ridge afghan and tea cozy designer Loani Prior's creations.

Next are the patterns, 35 fabulous, colorful patterns.  In the story "Konnichi Wa," you'll find smaller pieces, such as the cover design, a textured hat by Holli Yoeh:

Katharine Hunt's mobius

my checkerboard hat (!)

and elegant socks by Christina Behnke.

The second story is texture, including Therese Chynoweth's lovely lace cardigan;

Cheryl Murray's subtle yoked pullover

and Daniela Ni's tunic with textured edging.

Vintage Modern is the title of the next story, with an absolutely stunning red dress by Carolyn Noyes knit in one shade of Kureyon with a solid color Debbie Bliss yarn.

Wow.

Two skirts in more muted colorways are lovely, like this one byYoko Hatta:

and there is a long cardigan that showcases the repeating colors of Noro by Mari Tobita.

There are several shorter stories, too, including a men's story (I like this sweater by Kenny Chun)

a feature devoted to Noro Karuta, a new yarn with more monochrome-ish colorways (which, coincidentally, is on sale for a limited time only at Loop -- go here):

Wilma Peers design

two striking pieces making use of stripes;

Irina Poludnenko design

Galina Carroll design

home designs, like this throw

Erica Schlueter design

felted bowls

and a tote (both by Jacquiline van Dillen).

A variety of yarn weights are used, from yarn categories 1 (fingering) to 5 (chunky); sizing is generous, with most patterns going into the high 40s or low 50s-inch finished circumferences; and there are color photos, charts and schematics to make your knitting easier.

I do love Noro so for me, picking up a copy of this magazine was a no-brainer. (I even found it at Wegman's!). Lots of luscious patterns and inspiration, at the bargain price of $7.99.

Photos by Paul Amato for LVARepresents.com

Noro-mania

Coming soon, to a yarn shop or bookstore near you:  Noro Accessories, by Sixth and Spring, a lush book full of accessory projects to be knit in gorgeous Noro yarns. I am pleased to announce that I have two patterns in the book.  One is this cloche-style hat:

with decorative decreases on top.

while the second is this cushion cover (inspired by my recent forays into quilting):

Photography © Rose Callahan

© 2012 Sixth&Spring Books/Knitting Fever, Inc

The book has a total of 30 patterns in it, and would make a perfect holiday gift for a knitter, don't you think?  As soon as my copy arrives, I'll do a book review and show you more of the beautiful patterns.

No-Bull Book Review: Knit Noro (Trisha Malcolm ed.)

It is with great pleasure that I write today's Book Review. I've been a fan of self-striping yarns since the time I first saw one, and I am particularly fond of the ones created by Eisaku Noro. I understand that Noro yarns seem to trigger a love-'em-or-hate-'em response, but even if you aren't crazy about Noro self-stripers -- I personally love the vividness of the colors, the homespun texture and the wild color combos -- there are plenty of other self-stripers out there now that do similar things.

Our friends at Sixth & Spring have presented Noro lovers, and indeed, all fans of self-stripers, with a great gift by publishing Knit Noro: 30 Designs in Living Color (MSRP $24.95, available for $15.67 via the link).


What I like so much about this book is the combination of irresistible patterns that take advantage of the colors and striping tendencies of Noro yarn, and the terrific production values of the book. So let's take a closer look.

Knit Noro is a hardcover book, approximately9 by 12 inches, and 144 pages. From the minute you open the book, you are greeted with luscious color. The endpapers are a vintage-feeling floral print; the table of contents, title page and other pages aren't printed on a plain white background but are white type on more gorgeous photos; and every pattern is photographed at least 3 or 4 times in its individual pattern section. It seems like photographer Rose Callahan was able to record every nuance of color and texture from the Noro yarns in the photographs in this book. Also it's worth a shout-out to Sarah Liebowitz for the lovely styling in the photographs.

Striped Shawl (Tanis Gray)

The book features 30 patterns which are all shown as women's patterns, although a few of the accessories, like the Chevron Scarf, could be worn by men (perhaps with some color alterations). The patterns are pretty evenly divided between sweaters and accessories, with a few afghans/throws thrown in for good measure. And wisely, editor Trisha Malcolm let the color take center stage. (As my husband breathlessly told me when he opened the box containing my copy, "Each project gets its own two-page spread: FULL BLEED!")

Rainbow Knee-highs (Barb Brown)

It's hard to pick out favorites in the book since there is a wide variety in terms of techniques used, difficulty level and style -- and all of the patterns are simply luscious. So I'm just going to highlight a handful of the designs; you can see photos of all the designs at KFI's website here. The cover design is a belted kimono style cardigan that showcases the Noro stripes by creating a dramatic V in the back.

Belted Cardigan Vest (Theresa Schabes)

I like the way the Block Cardigan uses a solid color (in Cash Iroha) for cuffs and buttonbands, and also to create some framing around the component pieces of the sweater.

Block Cardigan (Peggy Forester)

Some of the patterns allow the yarn to stripe as it wants to,

Leaf Lace Socks (Judy Sumner)

while others deliberately alternate two different colorways (or start at different places in the color repeat) to create contrast.

Chevron Scarf (Cheryl Kubat)

This fair isle design, done in Noro sock yarn, is exquisite.

Fair Isle Cardigan (Mary Scott Huff)

I was happy to see some different techniques featured, like Rosemary Drysdale's entrelac scarf:

Entrelac Scarf (Rosemary Drysdale)

modular knitting, as in this throw:

Modular Afghan (Anna-Beth Meyer-Graham)

and stranded colorwork, including my own stranded chullo-style cap:

Fair Isle Cap (me!)

There's even a felted project:

Felted Cloche (Tina Whitmore)

The sweaters tend toward those styled as vests or sleeveless layering pieces,

Sideways Stripe Vest (Cheryl Murray)

and again, here the yarn's striping tendencies along with multidirectional knitting and other cleverness create interesting effects:

Modular Vest (Linda Cyr)

For my statisticians, here is your breakdown of the patterns:

• 4 hats
• 4 cardigans
• 1 pullover

Trinity Stitch Sweater (Valentina Devine)

• 5 scarves and 1 gaiter
• 2 pairs of socks (one crew-length, one knee-high)
• 1 pair of gloves & 1 pair of wristwarmers
  
• 3 afghans/throws
• 6 vests
• 1 sleeveless tunic
• 2 shawls/wraps

Fair Isle Cap (me!)

I am really happy to note that there are some nice expanded size ranges for many of the sweaters (well into the 40s and in some cases 50-some inch finished chests) and of course the accessories and throws are one-size fits all. You'll find schematics for the patterns that need them. The yarns used are Noro's Kureyon and Silk Garden (both worsted-ish weight), and Silk Garden Sock and Taiyo (both fingering weight).

Cabled Cap (Faina Goberstein)

So for the terrific patterns, the juicy color photography, and the overall fun factor, I give Knit Noro two self-striping thumbs up. I am not giving away any secrets when I tell you that the book has been so enthusiastically received that there is a second Noro-themed book coming in January...